SO what does a Property Underwriting Manager for a French insurance company know about cabbages, cauliflower and curly kale? Well, quite a lot actually - as the 200 regular customers for Rob McGregor's boxes of organic veg will testify.

Despite his high-flying city career, Rob was always a country boy at heart, and by family background in Clackmannanshire. When his company, based in Milton Keynes, was taken over a few years ago, he and wife Elaine decided it was time for a fresh start and healthy living. So they upped sticks and returned to her home county of Yorkshire.

They bought 20-acre Low Leases Farm near Leeming Bar and set about living the good life.

In just three years, they've built up those 200 customers, are regulars at farmers' markets and have a flourishing wholesale business. They also have 14-month-old Eleanor and other jobs - Elaine commutes to Sheffield and insurance and Rob's a part-time tutor with the Open University. They both work very hard.

"Life is never boring," says Rob, having a rare break. For 90 per cent of the veg they sell, they've grown themselves.

"The soil is perfect, light and sandy. When we first moved here one of the neighbouring farmers told me 'Everything grows in Scruton soil' and he was right".

That includes weeds too, of course, which seem to grow best of all, but that's part of the joy of an organic life.

"We supplement the boxes in the "Hungry Gap" - around May, by using vegetables from other suppliers. And we do fruit boxes as well, bananas, mangoes etc, which of course we get from other suppliers."

But there's home grown pork, occasionally, from their Saddleback pigs.

"I was surprised at how much I enjoyed looking after the animals. That's a real pleasure. We have a house cow too. I was quite fixed on that, though I'm not always so keen when I have to milk her by hand twice a day."

Their box scheme started almost by accident. Rob was giving veg to friends and acquaintances, such as the physios at the Friarage who sorted out his tennis elbow, and then others started asking for them. "We didn't do any advertising. It just sort of grew by word of mouth. But then we had a lot of support from the North Yorkshire Smallholders' Society which has been a great help."

They now employ one person full time and hope to take on more. Plans for the future include setting up collection points for the box scheme, enabling them to cover a wider area, extending their growing range and season with a greenhouse - currently in bits waiting to be erected - and a polytunnel. They would also like to open a shop at the farm.

"The box scheme doesn't suit everyone. And then people don't always remember which days farmer's markets are where and they say they wish we had a shop, so that's a possibility."

Contrary to what you'd think, Rob rarely found big city life stressful, even if he was often dealing with millions of pounds of other people's money. "That didn't worry me. But worrying about whether the cabbages will grow properly, now that really is stressful."

There are times, weeding squash in torrential rain for instance, when he has a brief hankering for the long lunches and easy comfort of his old life.

"But when I'm working on the tractor in the top field at seven in the morning and the sun is shining on the Cleveland Hills, it's wonderful. I wouldn't be anywhere else."

* Rob and Elaine McGregor, Low Leases Farm, Low Street, Leeming Bar. Tel: (01609) 748177. Boxes of seasonal vegetables at £5, £8, and £10. Also fruit boxes. Delivered in a an area roughly from Thirsk to Darlington, Barnard Castle and Leyburn across to Stockton. Also at Farmers' Markets in Northallerton, Middleham, Richmond and Darlington.

Published: 21/09/2001